The nice thing about being a "real" journalist is that I don't have to grapple with the notion of objectivity when something I genuinely enjoy and have a personal interest in comes along. Case in point: SNK 40th Anniversary Collection for Switch. Not only was it produced by a former colleague and recurring Retronauts contributor, it also pairs neatly with that gadget I helped Kickstart over the summer. I would not be able to review this collection at a major media outlet... but Retronauts isn't that. And good thing, too, because I genuinely feel the SNK collection approaches reference-standard quality for compilations (loaded as it is with innovative features, esoteric games, clever control mechanisms, and loads of historic info); I'm glad I can trumpet that fact from the proverbial rooftops.

It's a good thing the collection turned out well, or else our podcasting plans would look awfully foolish. Back at BitSummit this past May, I met up with Retronauts contributor D. Feit (who, at the time, was not quite yet a contributor) to discuss his love for SNK vis-a-vis this recently announced compilation. That conversation is now available in podcast form:

Yes, this is Pt. 1. The second part will be along in a few weeks as I talk to SNK 40th Anniversary Collection producer Frank Cifaldi about the nuts-and-bolts of this anthology and his particular vision for enshrining an important but relatively unknown corner of video game history. Please look forward to it, as the kids say.

Episode description: Retronauts contributor and SNK ultra-fan D. Feit joins Jeremy Parish for a casual conversation about the games of SNK 40th Anniversary Collection for Switch—the first in a two-part exploration of this landmark anthology!